It's the hardest part for me, I hate not training hard and I hate taking time off. The most discipline I must exert is for my deload week. Diet, training, sleep and routine are all easy in comparison.
I've just accepted to train 2-3x per week and never take deloads. Don't need them, my body always gets enough time to recover. Get better at pushups or pullups (anything high reps), learn martial arts or run long distances in other days. I train legs once every 10 days btw. Always hitting PRs
If you are smart with how you structure your workouts you could probably get away with taking deloads much less often. What I've been doing lately that's been feeling great is working out for 2 days , then resting for 1 and repeat. I've also tried to structure my workout in a way that whatever muscle is being hit heavy , has already been given plenty of time to rest and grow from the previous workout (+-48-72hours). *Especially* for heavy compounds. With isolations you can fuck about a bit more. For example , day 1 I'll do barbell back squats. Day 2 I have no leg workouts at all , and after that I have a rest day. And now the following workout I'm doing squats again. Theoretically my quads/glutes/etc are growing constantly , AND getting time to rest.
I understand that feeling, so I treat deload weeks as my only opportunity to really work on things like flexibility where stretching for flexibility is otherwise difficult to do.
@@anthonycaruso5527 sad that you sit on RU-vid all day commenting negative stuff without sufficient enough context for it to even make sense. I’ll enlighten you though since you’re so concerned. Has nothing to do with my results, simply searching for multiple outlooks on a topic I’ve recently developed a curiosity in. 👍🏾
@@anthonycaruso5527 ahhh my results in things i cant get exposure to irl are highly dependent on youtube vids. I learned how to play golf and tons of home diy shet. i've probly saved a couple thousand bucks. enlighten and educate yourself bud.
It's 100% mental, like we HAVE to be in the gym or we feel like a pos. During my off days or deloads, instead of lifting I just walk on a treadmill and sit in the sauna. Helps tremendously
I had to deload in the middle of my first mesocycle. I couldn't believe the fatigue I was experiencing. Been back a few weeks now and feeling a lot better, shortened this second meso to 4 weeks instead of 6 which feels much more in alignment when I experience fatigue overload. Glad you're posting another video on this topic
After my year 6 of training or so i just stopped doing deload weeks. I just take 7-10 days off. Dont even step into the gym. When i do go back, i feel way more "fresh" and mentally fired up to start a new training block.
Chronically fatigued pretty well describes me. Ever since I began lifting 4 years ago I've been doing PPLPPL no rest, no mesocycles, no deloads. My fatigue levels are always high and I sometimes injure myself, and for the past year or 2, I've been the same size and body fat % making little progress. Now I'm going to physio for constant discomfort and just had my 3rd massage in the past month. I'm planning to now do 4 weeks training and 1 week deload to manage my fatigue while also taking that 7th day off each week. Fatigue is real.
Tbh PPL is TERRIBLE in terms of fatigue, think about it. You're better of doing an upper lower split or full body, those go much easier on your fatigue levels
@@DolphRor do push / off / pull / legs / off repeat. No need to align yourself to a seven day calendar week. Go on a five day cycle where you lift three days. Much better for fatigue.
Hey man Ive experienced the same thing with a PPL split. I personally always enjoyed the bro split or a dorian yates split more because you can actually really give your muscles time especially wjen you train balls to the wall hard. Maybe it also works for you!
Video I needed. Used a preset for my first 4 week meso on the app and was confused on what was recommended for the last week. “Is he really having me show up for this light shit?!?” I did it, didn’t question it. This week is week 1 of a 6x upper meso preset. I’m trusting the app, because what I was doing wasn’t working. Make me hot Dr Mike c:
@@Eggplantpermission Still at it. Shit works. I’m getting stronger, I’m getting size and most importantly…I have the confidence to push the numbers the app tells me. I was in a car accident a few years ago and was being way too conservative due to fear of injury/reinjury. Stripped it all down to proper slow and controlled form, it all feels smooth now and progression is there. Full range of motion without the bs ego excuses is the way to do it.
I've been training with planned deloads every 5-6 weeks for the last 5 years. For the past 10-12 weeks, I decided to try deloading each exercise reactively, and not doing planned, full body deloads, as suggested by Menno Henselmans in an article. I clearly felt I was spinning my wheels and getting permanently tired in the last few weeks, just as described in this video.
but when u deload exercises u STILL accumulate systemic fatigue and need to unload this at some time. i dont understand what menno is saying on this doesnt make sense and menno seems like an ant fucker (lost in details and scientific nonsense)
I would like a discussion between Menno and Mike. As far as I understand Menno is of the opinion that overtraining etc is mostly a non issue and that it requires a whole lot more work to actually overtrain than what most people do so would be interesting to hear what they say about it.
Hey Mike, Love the vids/no nonsense knowledge. Saw you doing BJJ on another Channel and I've probably spiked your metrics sense then. I was 515 a year ago, currently 408 this morning. Using your App and knowledge to change my life. Thanks for what you do Brother.
@@iHandleNasdaq The scars of the past drove me to food. Molestation, physical/mental abuse. Lots of things drive ppl to do crazy stuff. Then I found Christ and now I find my self worth through him.
Experienced lifters can feel when things arent recovered and will naturally do light loads and focus more on stretching then pushing hard. Ive listened to that for a long time with great results. Next week you come back and you can just feel the strength
I would have needed this man and this content 20 - 25 years back, when your only source of training advice were gymbros or Flex-magazine and stuff.... : ) still hella useful today, no doubt about that....
A lot of the gym bro advice eventually comes around to being the ideal way to train. E.g. large volume, higher reps, shock the muscle by changing up the routine, pump, protein right after workout.
It's incredible. I take 5 or 6 days totally off. It sounds awful, but when you come back you feel incredible, and sometimes I'm even stronger even though Im still like 2 reps in reverse. Your joints will thank you too.
@@BrofUJu I'm always strongest the first week back after a holiday, surprises me every time. That fatigue builds up man, just relaxing and getting plenty of steps in is a good deload for me
@@WrightyFPL Exactly. I do 5 day cycles of stuff and I'm on my 7th go around, so 35 days and I absolutely feel it. Starting to get weird joint tweaks and stuff and I can tell my body is saying we need a break lol
I recently learned I have been overtraining for almost a year. Took most of June off with a few light deloading days sprinkled in. Only a few workouts in and I feel fantastic.
Mike, thank you per usual for quality content. Would you be able to do a leg day video for those with low back injury once cleared to begin lifting again? Thanks in advance ☺️
@@James-Lifts Yeah! Let's go loser!! No debilitating back pain = no gains BRO!!! Don't tell me you are injured unless I can see your spine is on the floor!!!! The last time I didn't squat was when I was dead!!!!! Are you dead BRO!!!!!!
I struggle with a permanent, debilitating back injury. Just find the best way for you to train. If that doesn't include squats, so be it. I use leg press to prefatigue and then squat with much lighter weight as a result but still hit my RIR etc. Good luck, hang in there.
Hey i think im in the overtraining zone for about a year (yeah i now learned about that) so what did you do to bring it down ? I think i should deload for more than a week right ? Thanks in advance!
Burning muscle: this is so real. I did exactly this, I got a DEXA, then did a 8 week cut, followed by a 12 week 'bulk' with no deloads. I lost a ton of strength during the cut, then built up a little, but exactly like Dr. Mike said, I stayed at this plateaued level for the next couple months, doing the same volume, training hard, etc. Everything else was on point, diet, sleep, etc. Then got another DEXA after 6 months. The result: I LOST muscle. Despite 4 months of hard training after the cut I still lost muscle due to an inability to progress due to excessive accumulated fatigue. You live and you learn. I now have the app and will not make that mistake again!
Have you ever done videos on immune system effects and management. Like how much does the fatigue factor into susceptibility of catching seasonal colds and how does this sort of thing effect meso-cycling? A 2 week sinus infection every spring usually interupts my cycles. A flu bug every fall. Can increased deload management reduce the "sickness" frequency?
Either deload every 4-6 weeks, or take 4 days off has been working for me to not only progress further, but also avoid injuries! Great video as usual big Mike.
@@unbabunga229so I see some ppl deload every 4-6 weeks. But I wonder if I should only deload if I notice a negative performance at the gym or feel fatigued
I think people also do not pay enough attention to the drop in your immune system response, and how that plays a role in inflammation and damage control. You can become sick and unable to repair muscles due to a slowed immune response when you are over fatigue. You become prone to infections and mental symptoms such as depression and anxiety. This also effects your sleep because your body could be fighting innate infections in your sleep and effect your recovery process, or anxiety and depression is affecting your ability to get consistent sleep. Rest is important. Deloads are important. I program 2 rest days a week and a deload week every 5-6 weeks in my program. I have also implemented something called a preload week directly following the deload week. During Deload I go 50% intensity, and preload 75% intensity. This effectively gives me almost 2 weeks to bring fatigue way down below base level, while also maintaining strength gains from previous cycles. Allowing me to ramp up back to a higher intensity gradually following a de-load instead of shocking my body all at once.
Very valuable information! Explains so many issues I have had, and why I was exhausted all the time in general day life. Took your advise and continued significant gains, I am no longer tired away from the gym and I feel better when I am training.
Dr. Mike, could you please address a video for people who have shift work? In the case of shift work recovery is not the same. Some examples are: doctors on emergency call, aviation industry professionals, factory workers, etc. Your videos inspire me, but due to nature of my work, I struggle with consistency (even though I consider myself very disciplined), and how to plan for proper rest and training. Thanks a lot and keep up the great sense of humour :).
Fantastic content that came just at the right time. Come to the end of four weeks of incredible gains and enjoying the work outs. Suddenly hit a wall and felt incredibly tired and fatigued and couldn’t figure out why - now realise that catabolic state kicking in. Going to de load next week for sure and then back in the week after with new vigour. Thank you.
Mike, thank you for this video; I'm on week three of the app, on a program that's about triple my previous volume, and I have, and have been downplaying, all of these symptoms. You've convinced me to make sure I find some more time for sleep, starting tonight, and to make sure I'm don't squander all this work. Love the app!
It took me 7 Years of Training to figure Out the Information he gives for Free. I figured out its best for me do Dont Train at all for Sometimes 4 and Sometimes 5 days. YOU DONT LOSE YOUR Gains if You dont Train for 5 days. Yes i know the Fear is REAL.
I deloaded in my toilet after eating beans. I almost delaoded in my pants. Close one! Then i deloaded in muscle training. They both feel really great! Ive always deloaded during muscle training. I just never knew what to call it or how long to go until dr mike. And how much stimmulus is too much for a deload. Thanks dr mike!
I'm new to training; I've been going since December of 2023 so absolutely not your target demographic as far as the app goes but this video was super helpful to me. I was the heaviest I've ever been in my life at the end of last year and decided to change literally everything. Diet routines exercise all of it. I've been going hard for almost 4 months straight but just recently had a vasectomy and was forced to stay on my ass for a solid 5 days I did a half workout last night to test where I was at and my body feels absolutely incredible. I'm feeling post exercise soreness and pump more than I've been feeling in the past month or so, My body felt more willing to push towards failure, and I feel like I just in general got way more out of the workout than I have in a while. All this to say I'm glad I know what deloading is now haha
I didn't like taking deloads when I was smaller and weaker. Now I look forward to the deload halfway into the cycle. Time off from hard lifting is fun indeed.
I love de-loads, I'm tired dammit! Then I find myself pushing, pulling myself over rocks and boulders and hiking into canyons to fish on my deload/break days. Damned if I do, damned if I don't.
This couldn't be timed better. I'm in the middle of my week off my 5 day PPL split after 12 weeks. I aim to take a week off every 6-12 weeks (depending on vacations) for extra recovery. I have a slight, progressive joint or ligament injury in my left wrist. I can't tell what the issue is but it often hurts if I put pressure on the wrist at an angle, or after certain lifts (dumbbell curls, triceps pulldown, any cable exercises). I'm hoping that a full week off is what I need.
You need to tone down intensity. You are way over training if you are experiencing joint pains. 5 day PPL with 12 weeks in a row without proper fatigue management is a lot. Listen to the warning signs in your body.
I really didn’t schedule my deloads before getting this app, and would instead get burned out of the gym and take a few days off every couple months, whether it be because I’d get sick, or just grow to hate the gym. With the app though, I got to my final two weeks where I was supposed to go balls to the wall, and my weight AND reps are dropping. Getting pumps on my first set, and resting 2-4 minutes and dropping half the reps on my bench for each set. Deload starts tonight and Im so excited for it, because I just feel physically and mentally drained. Not so much sore (some soreness but doing upper body 3x a week doesn’t allow much soreness), but absolutely drained. But I was lying to myself early on and going to failure or just short when i was supposed to be going to 2 or 3 rir, so… Yeah, excited for deload then next meso!!!!
At the beginning of the pandemic I couldn’t use my gym for 3 months. When the home gym weights I ordered finally arrived, the deadlift and squat went up astonishingly easily. That should’ve been a signal.
You're literally describing what happened to me in my 20s except I went so hard in the paint I lost 13lbs and didn't lose strength... Until I just crashed and I lost about 25% strength in 2 weeks. I was training so hard 1-2 times a week I could smell blood because I was rupturing capillaries in my nose.
Question/Thoughts on this subject. Deload as how you described in this video (Fewer sets/reps, lower weight, same routine) vs. 1 week of coming in and doing stretching, mobility work with joints, LISS (walking), ab work.
Dr Mike , glad I found your channel. Can you please do a video or series on injury recovery? Common injuries like shoulder & knee. I’d love more info on best ways to continue training, adapt your workouts and how to progress. I’ve been dealing with a nagging knee and shoulder injury for over year that has kept me from being able to bench and squat at any meaningful weight. Injuries were from benching and squatting going too heavy too fast. Thanks for the content!
Just finished my first a tual meso cycle and did a deload, back on my 2nd meso now. I honestly doubted the deload, but the results from using the app have been fantastic so I trusted it. Never did a deload before, but wholly moley did I come back feeling fresh and hungry on my first proper session back.
I train jujitsu and muay thai on top of my lifting. I have been doing Push/Pull/Legs every 10 days so i hit each 3 times per month and my gains have been INSANE since i started doing this last month.
QUESTION - how much of newbie gains is lack of fatigue? The follow-up question - is reduced gains of experienced/older lifts significantly impacted by lack of deloads?
Dr. Mike just explained my condition holy shit,,,,, i go in I don’t gain muscle and I’m getting weaker by the day. I’ve stopped going to the gym all together I finally figured out and dr. Mike confirming what I thought am too tired and wore out to progress, I need to rest as My schedule looked like this, 2 muscle groups a day 6 days a week sometimes 7 for the last year, can’t do it anymore need rest maybe a couple months off. This was fine and worked when I was a newbie but 20 years later and @ 45 years old I can’t keep training like this,,, I’m at 180lbs-175lbs lean 5’ 10” I don’t care what I lose I need to heal I’ll get it all back and then some now realizing what my issue is as I’ve been thru this before
I'm on week 7 of 12 weeks of GZCL Program on Boost Camp. This week I feel the fatigue. But not deload built in. Been getting very linear progression, but now starting to fail on rep goal. Before even seeing this video was considering taking a week off.
I do de load , but more just having more reps and more of a chilled week, then back at it when I'm feeling back to normal again, need the gym just to feel alive , need it
I'm doing my first deliberate deload this week! I really needed it as I was pushing my limits lately, I thought I could just get used to it but the accumulated fatigue really got to me. I also had a skin transplant on my arm five years ago, never had problems with it but now it's getting swollen all of a sudden, so it's actual proof that I haven't pushed myself that hard before. On paper it looks standard and I only switched to a Push Pull Legs split after several years at the gym (with some medical breaks) but I also do lots of AMRAP sets. I do Push, Rest, Pull + Oly Lifting, Legs/Abs, Push, Pull, 2 hour run + abs, and 10,000 steps a day. 15-18 sets for back per week, 12 for chest, 12 for shoulders etc, 15-19 sets per workout On paper standard stuff and I was able to recover for the next workout just fine but overall it was getting a bit too much.
This is why i work out 3 times a week and leave , Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday for rest. Working out 5 days a week i cannot see a point in it, body needs rest to repair.
Learning more as I go and I didn’t even know that you SHOULD deload or what that even was when you’ve progressively been upping weight and training almost every day. Thanks for the info and it was kinda nice to work more on form w/ the lighter weight. Going back into a regular session is kinda sucking tho lmao.
Dr. Mike been following the RP app program as best as my schedule will allow and just started the deload week. Holy hell it's nice! Im really looking forward to seeing the next mesocycle and how i respond to it! Thanks
i really needed to hear this. i find it hard to go ‘easy’ in the gym. I do construction work and went 6 days to gym for couple months, did hot n cold showers for recovery, tried everything.. 6 months later with so much trial en error am now going to train (4 days) with meso cycles and deload weeks. Training hard is one thing but u need to train smart as well.
i don`t plan deloads but i usualy go to a vaccation or festival and ten i don`t train at all. But not as often as every 4 weeks probaly. But since i started with muay thai i skiped some training days once in a while. And i got even stronger strangely. but it kinda goes up and down. A bit hard to tell because we also do a lot of additional excercises in Muay thai
Concerning this concept of “spinning your wheels” while fatigued or potentially under hypocaloric conditions (when cutting weight)… I really wonder whether it is a waste of time to train close to failure… while making little rep/performance progress over a number of weeks. My question would be, isn’t it possible that hard work that appears to result in zero gains ACTUALLY potentiates gains later on. So maybe you go HARD but just barely maintain your lifts and gain no weight for 8 weeks, then deload/rest, and the. Go into a calorie surplus for another 8 weeks. I am guessing those second 8 weeks will be much more productive than if you reduced your training intensity or deloaded twice during the first phase instead of only one time
Not an effective use of time despite the novelty of the idea. Remember you have other aspects of fatigue management like connective tissues, tendons, stress, injuries etc.
Does this also apply to beginners? I can squat 85 kg 3x10, RDL 110 kg 3x10, dip 4x10 with 20 kg and pull up 3x12 with 12,5 kg ekstra weight (calisthenics focused)? Love the channel, and everything you touch is gold Mike!
@@jason2014 I asked a question, if you cant answer it dont reply. I was not trying to impress anyone, I dont have that low level of self worth that I need to do that on a youtube comment section. Apparently you have since you need to be condescending to people online.
It does gives you a chance to physically and mentally step back, eat a couple cheat meals and re focus. I'm at the end of my deload week and I went a little crazy on the cheat meal part but I'm very much looking foreword to going hard and eating clean again.
Since we have a new superman, I would love to see a video on how you would set up his diet and exercise. Especially since he was casted only 5 months before production. Super curious how you would go about it!
Hey dr. Mike, I lift weights but I also do martial arts. When I deload should I also skip one martial arts session or should I deload only the weightlifting session? I would go easier in the martial arts session but unfortunately I don’t get to dictate the training pace in class lol
Awesome stuff. I was doing the deload with lower weight and reps without cutting off on the number of days in PPL. Gonna try this method in the next deload week.
I just have heavy weeks and lighter weight weeks all yr round. Id have a hard time not going to the gym 5 days out of the week. Maybe ill plan a vacation to help deload
I miss the mountain dog everyday. I was most sad that I wouldn’t be able to gain anymore knowledge from him. I was worried I wouldn’t be able to find anyone else as knowledgeable. I am so glad I found you Mike!
Same concept for running as well, you can have multiple high mile weeks and start to get diminishing returns because your body is starting to fatigue heavily. It's important to set aside a good week or so of slightly lower training volume or intensity so please deload people!
Instead of working out at lower reps/sets/weights as a deload, what about completely resting from the gym or any muscle damage for the same period as a deload? Curious to know the different effects or results using this approach
Well. The thing with taking time of totally is that it's tougher to control, less predictable. With a deload week you have the opportunity to still put in work - like if you're a powerlifter, you get a nice opportunity to make sure your technique is dialed in, you put some extra mobility work in and so on etc. Resting totally is fine but for some individuals there will be diminishing returns such as "losing your groove" or perhaps feeling stiff/immobile etc I'm certain exercises.
